Sun Moon Empire

Seeing Xing Yan's miserable state, Yu Tianlong's eye twitched. Why did he feel like Firefly had a grudge against Xing Yan? Her fists had targeted Xing Yan's face the entire time. Glancing at Xing Yan's head, swollen like a pig's, even a tough man like Yu Tianlong could not help but shudder.

If he were beaten into such a state in front of the Heavenly Dragon Gate disciples, he felt that someone else could take over as young gate master. It was simply too humiliating.

"Hmph! Yu Tianlong, now you know how formidable our Earthly Dragon Gate is, right?"

Nan Qiuqiu proudly planted her hands on her hips, lifted her little head, and provocatively challenged him.

Liu Xing fell silent. No, Young Miss! Firefly and I are about to leave. Aren't you afraid that they'll beat you viciously in the next match after you provoke them like this?

Liu Xing could already imagine Nan Qiuqiu and the others getting brutally beaten in the next match, and he could not help observing three seconds of silence for this Little Demon Girl.

Yu Tianlong was silent for several seconds before stepping forward, hoisting Xing Yan onto his shoulder, and turning to leave. His several lackey disciples hurriedly followed. Usually, they were the ones bullying the Earthly Dragon Gate disciples. This was the first time they had been bullied in return, and they did not even dare leave behind a threatening remark.

They did not know that Firefly would be leaving today. Otherwise, they would have said something threatening, more or less, just as Nan Qiuqiu, Xu Shenshu, and the others had done before.

Nan Qiuqiu was as delighted as though she had won a battle, proud as a little peacock. She excitedly pulled Firefly along and chattered nonstop, utterly delighted.

Xu Shenshu, Feng Jue, and the others, however, wore bitter expressions. They had already foreseen their miserable fate in the next match. Liu Xing patted several of them on the shoulders. "You all... sigh!"

With a sigh, Liu Xing followed the group ahead and left the Training Field. The Earthly Dragon Gate disciples looked even more miserable, on the verge of tears. Following such an unreliable Big Sister Head was truly difficult for them.

Although they would most likely suffer a vicious beating next time, this time truly made them feel as if they had finally held their heads high. Since awakening their Martial Souls, they had been suppressed by Yu Tianlong and the others from the Heavenly Dragon Gate. They had been unable to lift their heads for an entire year, and one could imagine that this would continue for many more years, perhaps even a lifetime.

This time, Firefly had helped them teach Yu Tianlong and Xing Yan a lesson, making them all feel as though a weight had been lifted from their hearts. Yu Tianlong and Xing Yan were not invincible after all. Had they not still been viciously beaten by their Second Sister Head?

High in the sky, over a thousand meters above the ground, Luan Yu spread a pair of mechanical wings behind her. These wings resembled a phoenix and were entirely Ice Blue. Several jet ports lined the ends of the wings, spraying invisible currents of air that provided the wings with power and allowed Luan Yu to race through the sky.

Beneath those enormous wings, Liu Xing and Firefly were clearly visible within two floating blue spheres of light.

After helping Nan Qiuqiu regain face, the three bid farewell to Nan Qiuqiu and Nan Shui Shui. Under Nan Qiuqiu's tearful gaze, they left Dragon City. Afterward, Luan Yu unfolded her Rank 9 Flying Spirit Tool, the Ice Phoenix Wings, and carried Liu Xing and Firefly into the sky.

At this moment, Luan Yu was using the Ice Phoenix Wings to fly with the two of them at the speed of sound. If she had not been concerned about Liu Xing and Firefly, this Rank 9 Flying Spirit Tool could have gone even faster.

Luan Yu had originally thought that the two little ones would be thrilled to fly with her, but they seemed completely unmoved by it, leaving her without even the slightest sense of accomplishment.

This isn't right! When Elder Sister took me flying for the first time, I was excited for ages. Why aren't these two little ones acting like normal children?

Luan Yu grumbled inwardly. But after seeing that the two little ones truly had no reaction at all, she could only operate the Ice Phoenix Wings at high speed in dejection.

How could Luan Yu have known that of these two little ones, one had ridden Starlight and traveled through the cosmos, while the other had transformed and piloted SAM beyond the atmosphere and into space? How could they possibly be astonished by supersonic flight at a mere thousand meters in the air?

"Aunt, where are we going?"

Liu Xing watched the clouds streak past him in boredom and asked Luan Yu. Firefly looked toward Luan Yu as well. Though they did not particularly care where they were going, any place would be unknown and unfamiliar to them.

But flying at high altitude was simply too boring, and they could not help wanting to find a topic to chat about.

The corners of Luan Yu's lips lifted. You two little ones finally couldn't hold back, huh? Honestly, you don't have even a bit of a child's curiosity. You gave me no sense of accomplishment at all.

"We're going to Mingdu in the Sun Moon Empire. Our home is there, and you'll probably be living there for many years to come."

"Mingdu—the capital of the Sun Moon Empire. It is known as the most prosperous and advanced city on Douluo Continent, as well as the only city on Douluo Continent without walls."

Although there had been no Sun Moon Empire in the setting of the first story within Liu Xing's memories, he had learned much from the Earthly Dragon Gate's collection of books. The Sun Moon Empire was a powerful empire that had unified the Sun Moon Continent, born from the native forces of that continent, which had collided with Douluo Continent several thousand years ago.

Several thousand years ago, the two continents collided, and the major forces upon them inevitably came into conflict as well. Driven by the ambitions of schemers, war naturally erupted.

That battle from several thousand years ago was later known as the Holy War. It was a war between the Sun Moon Empire and the Three Great Empires of Douluo Continent. The Sun Moon Empire fought one against three and, relying on its advanced spirit tool technology, once held the upper hand. The Tang Sect, the faction founded by the protagonist of the previous story in Liu Xing's memories, declined during that war.

The Hidden Weapons upon which the Tang Sect depended for survival were not entirely useless against the Sun Moon Empire's advanced spirit tools, but they were still utterly unable to withstand them. Spirit tools against Hidden Weapons were simply a crushing advantage from an entirely higher level.

After that battle, the status of the Tang Sect's Hidden Weapons plummeted. It could no longer maintain its standing as a top faction, and it gradually declined, falling from the upper echelons of Douluo Continent into the dust.

Yet what puzzled Liu Xing was that Tang San, the protagonist of the first story, possessed Hidden Weapons powerful enough to slay gods. The Sun Moon Empire's spirit tools clearly did not possess the power to slay gods, so how had the Tang Sect, inheriting Tang San's Hidden Weapons, declined?

No one could answer that question. However, although the Tang Sect had declined, another force with deep ties to it had shone brilliantly during that Holy War, making its name known across the continent.

That force was Shrek Academy, now the number one academy on the continent and an academy that had produced a Deity. At that time, the Sea God Pavilion Master of Shrek Academy raised an arm in rallying call and gathered over a hundred Titled Douluo. Together, they defeated the once-arrogant Sun Moon Empire, forcing it to cede territory and pay reparations, and humiliating it into renaming the Sun Moon Continent as Douluo Continent.